HC Deb 05 April 1967 vol 744 cc234-5
33. Mr. Bence

asked the Secretary of State for Scotland if he will state the allocations for school building in Scotland in 1967–68 and for the succeeding two years.

Mr. Ross

As the Answer includes a table of figures, I am circulating it in the OFFICIAL REPORT.

Mr. Bence

Can my right hon. Friend give an assurance that he will not indulge in the practice indulged in by previous Secretaries of State of cutting the school-building programme year after year, thus setting back the final solution of the Scottish school-building programme?

Mr. Ross

My hon. Friend can rely on the experience of the last few years as showing that, in times of difficulty and stress, the one thing we do not do is to take it out on hospitals and schools. When he sees the allocations in the OFFICIAL REPORT, he will see that they are substantial.

Mr. MacArthur

Is the Secretary of State aware that we on this side judge this Government more by performance than by promise? Is he aware further that the value of primary and secondary school building under construction at the end of last year had fallen by nearly £4 million? Is he aware further that the number of primary and secondary school places approved last year was only 30,000 compared with 47,000 in 1964? Is he aware—

Mr. Speaker

Order. That is enough to be aware of.

Mr. Ross

What the hon. Gentleman obviously is not aware of is the progress we have made.

Mr. Edward M. Taylor

Answer.

Mr. Ross

The hon. Gentleman should await, as should the hon. Member for Glasgow, Cathcart (Mr. Edward M. Taylor), the publication of the annual report, which will give far better figures for this year than he would probably hope to see.

Following is the table of figures:

INVESTMENT ALLOCATIONS FOR PRIMARY AND SECONDARY SCHOOL BUILDING
Education Authority 1967/68 1968/69 1969/70 Total
£000 £000 £000 £000
Aberdeen 660 680 660† 2,000
Angus 675 560 130 1,365
Argyll 351 131 62 544
Ayr 1,879 1,879 879* 4,637
Banff 600 150 100 850
Berwick 25 — 105 130
Bute 26 57 — 83
Caithness 110 170 80 360
Clackmannan 750 275 — 1,025
Dumfries 367 266 117 750
Dunbarton 1,767 1,767 1,066* 4,600
East Lothian 880 240 130 1,250
Fife 1,500 1,500 1,000† 4,000
Inverness 400 540 400 1,340
Kincardine 525 100 260 885
Kirkcud-bright 45 85 65 195
Lanark 3,036 3,239 1,665* 7,940
Midlothian 1,100 1,000 l,000† 3,100
Moray and Nairn 105 550 45 700
Orkney 20 430 — 450
Peebles NIL NIL NIL NIL
Perth and Kinross 760 380 130† 1,270
Renfrew 1,823 1,824 1,073* 4,720
Ross and Cromarty 500 600 50† 1,150
Roxburgh 180 210 200 590
Selkirk 180 60 350 590
Stirling 800 800 800t 2,400
Sutherland — 150 — 150
West Lothian 900 1,500 500* 2,900
Wigtown 257 86 6 349
Zetland 230 360 — 590
Burghs
Aberdeen 750 750 25† 1,525
Dundee 990 990 825† 2,805
Edinburgh 1,800 1,800 1,200 4,800
Glasgow 4,500 4,500 4,000 13,000
Total 28,491 27,629 16,923 73,043
* Part year allocation only.
† Yearly allocation but subject to later review.